Pink Aftermath
by AngelofSoul
Summary: Shuichi Shindou... dead? O.o Oh no! Changed the genres again, sorry if I'm confusing you! It's still a mystery, though! :) I updated! FINALLY! I revised chapter 2 so it sounds better. :) ... crud, I think I screwed it up. O.o er... forgive me..
1. Prologue: The Old Woman

Pink Aftermath  
By: AngelofSoul  
  
Face the wrath of my Gravitation story!!!  
  
...  
  
...  
  
Yes, I have writer's block... curse it all. Oh well, I had to write this before I lost the idea! It's a crossover- if you've all read "Eerie Queerie" you'll love this wondrous Gravitation fic!!!  
  
Summary: Shuichi Shindou... dead?!  
  
Rating: PG-13  
  
Warnings: Shounan ai and character death.  
  
Prologue:  
The Old Woman  
  
The sun peeked through the freakishly neat windows of the apartments near the Star Bucks, (blooming with early morning customers) lighting the room in pleasant heat. On the middle most floor of this particular apartment building, rested what was more like a presidential suite. The windows clean and the insides neat, besides the bedroom, which was much more of a mess than anything.  
  
The floors were covered in clothes from different nights, but discarded for the same purposes. The bed was a tangle of large thin sheets of light blue colors, currently wrapped around a lone figure. The coverings were pulled up to his bunches of platinum blonde hair, which sprouted from his scalp like an out-of-control weed problem.  
  
This was Erie Yuki, whom is never alone in a bed this disgruntled. Looming over him (already dressed) was the one who joined him the night before.  
  
Thin shoulder-blade length pink hair tied in a messy ponytail, a Converse jacket resting loosely on his shoulders, and faded jeans cladding his pale legs- Shuichi Shindou glared at his lover with bright violet-red eyes.  
  
"Yuki," Shuichi nudged the sleeping figure, adjusting his backpack on his right shoulder. "Yuki, I'm leaving now!"  
  
But he did not move. Shuichi sweatdropped, Yuki was quite the heavy sleeper.  
  
"Yuki!" he tried again. "Yuki, I have to go to the studio now- Yuki!" Shuichi tugged on the blankets, which Yuki held stubbornly in his deep slumber.  
  
"Damnit, Yuki." The pink haired teen muttered. He sighed heavily, "If you don't wake up, I'll resort to serious measures!" he threatened.  
  
Yuki mumbled something inaudible, and rolled over. Shuichi huffed in irritation.  
  
"C'mon!" He pulled on the blanket again, and heard the irritated growl:  
  
"I said, I'M AWAKE." Yuki sat up letting the sheets fall over his exposed chest, his blue eyes reflecting aggravation. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, "Damn, are you always this annoying in the morning?"  
  
"I'm just trying to tell you I'm going..." Shuichi pouted blowing a loose strand of hair from his face.  
  
Yuki sighed, "And I heard." He threw his legs over the edge of the bed, standing and letting the blanket fall. He adjusted the jeans he managed to get on the other night, and headed for the door. Shuichi followed like an obedient lapdog.  
  
"How long?" Yuki said as they bent a corner around the hall.  
  
"Hm?" Shuichi asked.  
  
"At the studio, when are you coming home?" Yuki said as they entered the kitchen. He poured himself some rich, heavy black coffee loaded with an inordinate amount of caffeine.  
  
"Seven or eight," Shuichi said helping himself to a bit of a roll from the basket on the counter. "Maybe nine, depending if K has anything to say about it." He pondered a moment on his trigger-happy manager, than shrugged.  
  
Yuki grunted taking a sip, making a face at the bitter flavor. "Do you want me to wait for you?"  
  
Shuichi blinked, pausing in mid-chew on his bread. "...Wait for me?" he said almost timidly.  
  
Yuki rolled his eyes, "Yes, now don't make a big deal out of it." He warned.  
  
Shuichi's eyes went wide and a huge grin made residence to his facial features. With little warning, he threw his arms around Yuki's neck and clung to him like a magnet.  
  
"YUKI!!!" He shrieked happily, nuzzling his love's collarbone. "You'd wait all evening for me? You're so sweet!!!"  
  
"Damnit, Shuichi." Yuki growled as he had almost lost his coffee, and was now nursing a burnt finger.  
  
Shuichi stared up at him with large puppy eyes and a sickeningly sweet drool-enhanced smile. Yuki shuddered and the pink hair teen graced him with a messy kiss on the cheek.  
  
Grinning still, Shuichi stepped back and gave a solute, "I'll try and be back at seven! See you later, sexy thing!" With those words he was out the door as cheerful as a chipmunk.  
  
Yuki wiped the drool from his cheek and grimaced, picking up the paper from the day before. Halfway through the stalk market section, he put it down with a twitching frown.  
  
"Did he just call me 'sexy thing'?"  
  
Smiling and giggling like a chronic five-year-old, Shuichi couldn't have been happier. Not only did he have the greatest love making session of his life the other night, this morning Yuki had said the sweetest thing ever!  
  
"Oh, even if the sex is good- his loving words are the best." Shuichi sighed, pausing when he reached the end of the street. "He makes me feel so wonderful..."  
  
With loving thoughts of Yuki on his mind, Shuichi took a short cut through the park. He walked the cement pathway running through the gates, humming a sweet tune. He kicked a lit cigarette bud into the dirt with his Converse sneakers and began to pass the park benches.  
  
Pigeons had begun to gather about breadcrumbs being tossed by an old woman, who sat on the last bench close to the exit from the park. Shuichi began to whistle his tune as he went around the pigeon-crumb-frenzy, and the woman chuckled as he went passed.  
  
Shuichi paused, turning around. He spotted the old woman, who threw more breadcrumbs for the birds who purred their pigeon purr with content.  
  
Shuichi shrugged, and continued on, and the woman chuckled again. Glaring, he turned around again and looked at her.  
  
"Why are you laughing at me?" He demanded, slightly irritated.  
  
"Fu, fu, fu..." The woman grinned a toothless grin through her deep purple shawl. It was than Shuichi noticed that she was dressed much like a gypsy.  
  
Her smile widened, "Nothing child, 'tis nothing, it's just-"she paused, staring through the shawl with illuminated eyes that reminded Shuichi of a cat. "No, you probably wouldn't be interested."  
  
She tossed more bread and the birds scattered about, reforming around their free meal.  
  
"Interested in what?" Shuichi pressed.  
  
"Why, your clouded future of course." The woman's eyes were shadowed, but her grin remained the same.  
  
He blinked, a little curious. "Clouded future?"  
  
"Yes..." she studied him through the shawl. "But you don't look the type to believe in the spiritual reading..."  
  
Shuichi was dumbfounded, scratching his head in confusion.  
  
The old woman sweatdropped, "A fortune telling, boy!"  
  
"Oh!" Shuichi said, "Hey, I like fortune telling..." he trailed off. "This isn't a phony Cleo thing, is it?" He said suspiciously.  
  
"No, no, of course not!" The old woman frowned. "Messy work, tarot reading." She remarked with a snort. "I meant if you want your palm read."  
  
"Sure, I guess." Shuichi looked at his hand, wondering how anyone would be able to read anything from his palm.  
  
"Ah, excellent." The old woman smiled. "Than I have something wondrous for you," she pulled a piece of paper from... somewhere and motioned Shuichi over.  
  
He came, taking the paper and read it. Shuichi sweatdropped, "A flyer for Madam Ezmerelda's coffee shop???"  
  
"Fu, fu, fu," the old woman chuckled. "It's also a book shop and a fortune booth. I am Madam Ezmerelda. If you believe in revealing your future- or want an expresso, drop on by."  
  
The sweatdrop increased, "Gee, thanks." Shuichi mumbled stuffing the flyer in his back pocket.  
  
"And as a special treat," Madam Ezmerelda continued, "since you are the first one to receive my flyer, I will do a free palm reading for you right here. Something I do rarely, now. Your hand, my dear?" she asked, her toothless smile returning.  
  
Shuichi looked at her curiously, than shrugged. What harm could it do? He held out his right hand and the woman looked at it intently, taking it into her own.  
  
"Hm... oh, I see..." she murmured.  
  
"See what?" Shuichi asked.  
  
"The bread you had for breakfast this morning," Ezmerelda flicked off a crumb (which the pigeons attacked).  
  
The pink haired teen facefaulted.  
  
"And that your love line," she trailed an indention in his hand. "Is very long. It seems you have some one really special in your life. You will have this person for a very long time..."  
  
Shuichi beamed at that, happy at what he had heard. It was hard for him to suppress the excited "SQUEE!"  
  
The old woman winced, and Shuichi blushed.  
  
"Erm... sorry, please continue."  
  
"Right." She looked intently at his palm, "Odd... how very, very peculiar..."  
  
"What?" Shuichi looked down at his own hand.  
  
Ezmerelda traced a bony finger on another indention, "Your love line... your love line out shines your life line! How extraordinary!"  
  
Shuichi took his hand back and looked, "What does it mean?"  
  
"That your special someone will love you, even in death, and will love you for as long as he may live." She said mysteriously.  
  
"What- really?! Wow!" Shuichi's thoughts trailed to Yuki and Yuki's kind smile. His tall form, his nice body, his hot sex-  
  
"HE?!" Shuichi screeched, the pigeons retreating, frightened from the outburst. He blushed deeply, "How did you- I mean-"  
  
"Fu, fu, fu..." Ezmerelda smiled mysteriously. "Remember boy, I have the Gift- I know almost everything about you Shuichi Shindou, right down to the very brand of diaper you wore as a toddler."  
  
Shuichi inched away, slightly disturbed.  
  
Her smile faded, and she looked at his hand again. "Another thing that I find most peculiar- your life line is rather short. When I mean 'rather', I mean 'very'." She said seriously.  
  
Shuichi stood from the bench. "I think I should go," he backed away, very freaked. "I'm-"  
  
"Late for work?" The old woman grinned. "Yes, I suppose you should go- you wouldn't want your manager to shoot a bullet through your forehead." Her grin diminished. "But I should not jest about such matters, death is a serious thing."  
  
Ezmerelda's eyes were shadowed darker, "Be warned Shuichi Shindou, lead vocalist of Bad Luck. Death stalks you, and he will rest at nothing until he has you." She broke into a grin.  
  
A smile.  
  
A manic smile.  
  
Than her eerie chuckles, which echoed as Shuichi ran terrified through the park exit. This would be the last time he ever took a short cut to the studios.  
  
He breathed rather heavily, resting near another secluded area as soon as he was a few blocks away from the park. The laughter still pierced his eardrums and struck fear into him. Shuichi, breath steadily going to his lungs, stood straight shaking his head.  
  
Why should he be afraid of an old woman? She was a harmless senior citizen- what could she do? Throw her breadcrumbs at him?  
  
Shuichi laughed at the thought, than remembered the reading. He looked at his palm, retracing the lines Ezmerelda had read.  
  
_"Be warned Shuichi Shindou, lead vocalist of Bad Luck. Death stalks you, and he will rest at nothing until he has you."  
_  
Her creepy voice sent shivers down the singer's spine, but he shook out of those thoughts and brushed a fluffy black feather that landed on his shoulder.  
  
"Death stalks me," he said out loud, laughing out of comfort. "Kinda crazy- "  
  
Than a sharp pain cracked across his skull, and everything went black.  
  
Translations and Explanations ():  
  
Cleo- that woman who conned people with her phony psychic readings.  
  
YAY PROLOGUE! :) Alright, I finished it! It took me a few hours, but I managed it! Hooray for my first Gravitation ficcy! (jumps for joy) WAHOO!  
  
Now, give me lots of feedback and I'll write my next chapter. :) Oh, and this is a bit of a mystery thingy- before post my last chapter- let's see if you can figure out who did it. I'll throw clues all over, but don't guess early- try and put it all together.  
  
I'll try not to make it TOO obvious. ;)  
  
Well, good luck and I'm out!  
  
AngelofSoul


	2. Passing On

Pink Aftermath  
By: AngelofSoul  
  
Yes, I'm back- and with chapter two! YAY!!! I'm really excited about this fic, because it's not your usual death tragedy! :)  
  
Even more so excited about my other fic, a Harry Potter one called "Lustful Lupin".  
  
Yes, I'll get to that one eventually... I'm so uninspired... --;;  
  
Thank you to: Nikki, I am Kurama, The Invisible Fan, yukari, Kitty in the Box, and Zaphi! Thank you SSSSSSSOOOOOOO much for reviewing!  
  
To yukari: Uh... about the angst thing, yeah... it's only this chapter that's going to be a little sad. Nevertheless, I swear I'll make it funny!!! So just bare with me, kay? :)  
  
Yay originality!!! ... O.o Right... ANYWAY- this is where my crossover thing kicks in, enjoy!

&&&&&&&&

Chapter 2:  
Passing On  
  
The world was a blur when he opened his eyes, a smudge of green, blue, white, gray, and peach. The peach turned out to be his hand, stretched out as he lie dazed on his back. The green was the grass; blue were the outlines of the sky, the white of clouds, and the gray buildings of the city.  
  
He flexed his fingers, watching with delirious fascination. His head pounded like a terrible hang over, and the scents around him were over powering with nature.  
  
Shuichi sat up feeling like he's been hit in the head with a large rock, and it throbbed like a beating heart, each agonizing thump a hideous reminder of the lump that would soon make residence on the back of his skull.  
  
"Anyone catch the license on that truck???"  
  
He touched the back of his head; half expecting to feel blood oozing out of whatever crack that might be there. To his relief, there was nothing. He winced as everything that happened rushed back to him: kissing Yuki before leaving their apartment, taking a short cut through the park, talking to Madam Ezmerelda...  
  
"Damnit!" Shuichi swore, wincing as another sharp pain graced his already pounding head.  
  
_That woman!_ He thought venomously. _That little bitch! That little **OLD ASS BITCH!!!**_  
  
The memories of the reading and her predictions...  
  
_"Be warned Shuichi Shindou, lead vocalist of Bad Luck. Death stalks you, and he will rest at nothing until he has you."  
_  
"She probably did this to me, that phony Cleo." Shuichi grumbled standing from the ground. He looked around for his bag to discover it missing! He swore again.  
  
"Argh! A phony and a thief!" He was steaming now, but he had no time to look for that old woman and beat the stuffing out of her. Right now, he was probably terribly late for work. K was going to have his head on a silver platter...  
  
Shuichi sighed and looked at his watch to find that it wasn't working. It still read 7:08, around the time he reached the park. He sighed again; this was so not his day. Oh well, he might as well head to work anyway.  
  
Looking up at the sky, Shuichi judged that it was around noon, so he made his way to the streets. NG wasn't too far now, just one more block, cross the street, and to the familiar music studio he would go.  
  
Passing all the shops, navigating carefully around people who buzzed about with business, and passing a crowded TV store- where teens gathered themselves watching the news report. Shuichi didn't have time to look as he passed them without much thought. If he did, though, he would have heard distressed Bad Luck fans bawling:  
  
"Oh, poor Shuichi!" One cried holding onto her boyfriend.  
  
"Poor kid..." He murmured back.  
  
"Such talent- so young too," a grown man said holding his young daughter's hand, shaking his head.  
  
Standing with a group of people waiting to cross the street, Shuichi looked at his watch, knowing that it was futile. Seeing a man with one, he asked, "Excuse me, do you know the time?"  
  
The man said nothing, just kept looking ahead. Shuichi thought he didn't hear him, so he tried again.  
  
"Excuse me, sir. Do you know what time it is?"  
  
Again, nothing, the man just kept his eyes forward. A woman on his right then tapped him on the shoulder, "Excuse me, do you happen to have the time?"  
  
"Ah," he looked at his watch. "About 1:30 noon."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
Shuichi watched the exchange in disbelief. That man just totally blew him off!  
  
"How rude!" Shuichi grumbled, sticking out his tongue. Of course, he was completely ignored. The light changed, as did the walking signal. People began moving and Shuichi navigated himself ahead, hoping K wasn't too angry with him for being say... six and a half-hours late?  
  
The familiar sight of NG came into view, and Shuichi couldn't have been happier to see it. Sighing with relief, he sped his fast walk up to a jog, then he stopped immediately when he found the entrance bombarded with press.  
  
He stared wondering what was going on, _Are there interviews today or something_? He thought.  
  
Shuichi moved closer to say K, his tall American manager trying to squeeze pass the press. Hiroshi Nakano, Shuichi's best friend, followed with a little difficulty.  
  
"Hiro! K!" Shuichi called trying to get their attention. But they made no signs of acknowledgment.  
  
_How could they hear me_? He thought, irritated. _Damn press is in the way... what the fuck is going on_?  
  
"Hiroshi!" A woman with a microphone called, "Is this the end of Bad Luck?"  
  
"There's a rumor you're going solo, can you confirm this?" called another.  
  
"Will you find another lead singer?" and another.  
  
Shuichi's eyes widened, _Another lead singer?! What the hell?!_ He tried to push through the crowd all the while calling their names, "Hiro! K!"  
  
Again, nothing. They continued to push through, along with two menacing looking bouncers who helped them to K's car. Shuichi stopped once he saw the look on Hiro's face; what was it? Fear, mourning, hate? Shuichi couldn't decide. Then the guitarist stepped into the car, concealed with deeply tinted windows.  
  
The press broke apart and continued their reports, and all Shuichi could was stand there. He was confused, scared, feelings completely mixed. He didn't know what to do except...  
  
Go home.  
  
Yes, that's what he would do, he'll go home. Maybe Yuki knew what was going on... he'll ask Yuki.  
  
Once back at the apartments, Shuichi quickly ran up the stairs and fumbled his pockets for the keys. He swore once he remembered the keys were in his bag, the bag that phony old Cleo stole. He cursed her, and prayed that the apartment was open. Thankfully, someone above did like him, and the doors were unlocked.  
  
Shuichi pushed them open only to step into blackness. The lights were off as was the TV, leaving the apartment completely quiet. Was Yuki even home? He should be, the doors were unlocked... then why was everything so dark?  
  
Letting his eyes adjust to the abyss, Shuichi closed the door behind him with a soft click, and went deeper into the apartment.  
  
"Yuki?" he whispered going into the living room. He knew the place by heart, so he could easily avoid hurting himself on inanimate objects. Finding not a hair nor hide of his lover, Shuichi made his way toward the kitchen. Opening the door, his vision flooded with a dim light.  
  
"Yuki?" Shuichi said.  
  
Yuki was there, sitting at the table and staring blankly at the wall.  
  
Shuichi blinked, "Damn, Yuki you look like shit." He remarked expecting to hear a witty comeback, but the blonde said nothing. He continued to stare at the ever unchanging, hideously white wall.  
  
Shuichi moved closer and saw the red in Yuki's blue eyes, looking as though he hadn't slept in days. Squatting beside him, Shuichi slipped his arms around his love's waist, and waited for a response.  
  
Yuki did nothing, it was like he couldn't feel Shuichi there at all.  
  
"I had the worst day ever," Shuichi said trying to make conversation, snuggling Yuki's stomach. "Some old fart mugged me this morning, and even knocked me out! Made me totally late, y'know-"he stopped looking up at Yuki, his lover's body beginning to rack with sobs.  
  
Shuichi blinked, "Yuki? Yuki what's wrong?"  
  
Nothing was said as crystalline tears streamed from his eyes, splashing on a newspaper that was in front of him.  
  
Shuichi let go of his waist, standing to look at the paper. His eyes widened in disbelief and horror:  
  
_**TRAGIC BAD LUCK!  
**_  
_New band lead singer Shuichi Shindou found dead, Thursday, 8:15 AM blocks away from NG Studios –_  
  
Shuichi stopped reading there; his entire body shaking. _W-what?! This can't be... no way, this can't be right!  
_  
"Yuki!" Shuichi tried to grab onto Yuki's shoulder, gasping as his hand slipped right through him. He fell back, horrified.  
  
"Oh God..." Shuichi scrambled to his feet, stepping back. Scared, confused, all he could think of was to run. Get out, get away... get away from this place.  
  
That is what he did. But he ran senselessly, his legs carrying him wherever they would go. He found himself at the park, the same park where he spoke with Ezmerelda. He cursed the her again as he fell unto the bench, the same bench where the old woman fed the pigeons.  
  
Shuichi gasped shuddering breaths, finding himself to be crying. In what seemed like an instant, his entire life was gone. His band, his friends, Yuki... all of it.  
  
"Why me?" He whimpered sitting up. He pulled his legs to his chest and wrapped his arms tightly around his knees. "What did I do to deserve this?"  
  
There, on that bench where his death had been predicted, Shuichi cried. He ignored time, setting suns, and rising moons.  
  
All he could do was let his tears spill. Mitsuo Shiozu heard him that morning, the sobs of despair and a great loneliness; each whimper struck with a great mourning and no one there to comfort.  
  
It was his usual short cut through the park when the teen heard the sobs, as Mitsuo was on his way to school. S Boys High School, a few buildings down from NG Studios, was where he was supposed to meet his friends early before classes.  
  
Passed the swings on the cement pathway and near the benches stationed by the exit, Mitsuo spotted him. He blinked his large brown eyes with curiosity, making him look more boyish than usual. Moving his blonde bangs from his view, he squinted a little and found a bit of the form to be a bright fuchsia pink. Curiosity rising, Mitsuo approached and found the color to be his hair, which was tied in quite a messy ponytail. He was curled up on the bench, knees drawn to his chest and arms wrapped tightly around. 

&&&&&&&&&&

He was crying.  
  
"Are you..." Mitsuo placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, making him jump slightly. "Okay?"  
  
He looked up, his eyes the color of his hair, only with a dash of a deeper red in them. His eyes were worn from sobbing and he was staring at Mitsuo in an alien sort of way. He looked about eighteen, but Mitsuo had a feeling he was a bit older. The teen opened his mouth to say something, but shut it again.  
  
"You alright?" Mitsuo tried again.  
  
The pink haired teen looked around, than gestured towards himself.  
  
"Yes, who else would I be talking to?" Mitsuo smiled with good humor, hoping to lighten the teen's mood.  
  
A smile, one of relief- one of such great happiness his features.  
  
Then the question that terrified Mitsuo the most came to pass.  
  
"You can see me?"

&&&&&&&&&

TA DA! Chapter 2. Sorry it's so sad, but it'll get better, I promise! :) Angst isn't my best quality, as you can tell. :P but oh well! Please review- lots of reviews! I love em', the more I get, the longer the chapter! WAHOO!  
  
Well, I'm out! :)  
  
AngelofSoul 


	3. The Boy and his Charm

Pink Aftermath  
By: AngelofSoul  
  
OO;; You all wanna know something pretty freaky? I put that it was a crossover in the first chapter. And the second chapter. I told you all I was sticking in an "Eerie Queerie" thing.  
  
_**DOES ANYONE BOTHER TO READ MY NOTES?!?!?!**_ (cries profusely) ;;  
  
WWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!  
  
O.o  
  
Okay, I'm over that. :)  
  
ANYWAY, for the hell of it (even though I already happened to mention it), this is indeed a Gravitation/Eerie Queerie (or Ghost as published in Japan) crossover.  
  
I own absolutely nothing aside from Madam Ezmerelda and her lackeys.  
  
There, now. Thank you to: Chels-Dawg, SapphireDragon, yukari, omi, Zaphi, dhrachth, Akiko, The Invisible Fan, nikki, Lai, animeearth, and Kitty in the Box! Thank you ssssssooooo much for reading and reviewing! :) You all make me happy... Now, since there are... uh... (counts) 11 of you, I will write eleven pages of "Pink Aftermath"! :)

To: Chels-Dawg: :) Thanks!

To SapphireDragon- Wow, you reviewed three times! :) Thanks, it means a lot to me. Now, to answer your questions: Maybe I'll bring him back... I dunno, my brain hasn't worked that far yet (yeah, I know I'm evil :P). Which pairing do I favor? Um... It's hard to decide, I mean... Ichi's so sexy (drool), Hasunuma is so affectionate (KAWAII!!!), and Mikuni... (mutters) freakishly sexy lecher... I guess for now I'll go with Hasunuma and Mitsuo, but I do enjoy picturing a nice little sandwich of Hasunuma, Mitsuo, and Ichi (drools). Maybe with a side of Mikuni... heeheeheehee... :) But I'd love to see Mikuni and Kanau pairings, it's adorable! :) No, I'm afraid I don't know any sites. --;; unless you count e-bay, but snippets of doujinshi just isn't enough! ;; My favorite character and ghost is Kanau, he's so morbid it's appealing. :) He's so CUTE! I've read up to volume 2, I live on an island in the middle of nowhere. --;; We get everything last... ANYWAY, thank you so much for reading, and I love it when reviewers ask questions! If you have anymore, about me or the fic, I'll happily answer. :) Same goes for all!  
  
To yukari: I promise it will be funny!!! ... um, no- Mitsuo and Shuichi will NOT be paired. O.o that would be so... awkward.  
  
To omi- sorry for your confusion, I put a clear note at the top for you and everyone else. :) And in the first two chapters... --;;  
  
To Zaphi- really? O.o Wow, I don't even watch that show...  
  
To dhrachth- Thank you. :)  
  
To Akiko- Wow, that is pretty freaky. O.o Continuing!  
  
To The Invisible Fan- Thank you, and I will!

To nikki- thanks very much! :)  
  
To Lai- That'll be so fun! :) Thank you!  
  
To animeearth: Thank you!  
  
To: Kitty in the Box: Thanks, and I explained at the top about who he is/where he is from. Continuing!  
  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
  
Chapter 3:  
  
"You can see me?"  
  
That was all it would take for Mitsuo to turn around and walk away (stiffly), acting like he didn't see (or hear) anything at all. And this is what he did of course, walk away, But he knew he was doomed at the very saying of the horrific, haunting four word sentence.  
  
"Hey- hey wait!"  
  
_Ignore_, Mitsuo thought. _Just ignore_, he gulped and his strides were wider, faster.  
  
"If you run away I'll just come after you-"  
  
Mitsuo wondered whether to sprint or not. _Ignore_, he reminded himself.  
  
"Don't act like you can't hear me!!"  
  
Damn he's annoying!  
  
"STOP!!!"  
  
&&&  
  
Shuichi was quite surprised to find that someone could actually see him. No one else could- but this blonde boy...  
  
The singer had felt a strange aura about him when he gazed into those large, chocolate colored eyes. A spiritual aura, the kinds of feelings you get when you talk to a monk (Tatsuha not counting)- or something of the sort. It was hard for Shuichi to explain, it was like you could trust him, no questions asked.  
  
Shuichi couldn't help but smile when the boy spoke, it was like a wash of comfort when he heard the notes of concern in his voice.  
  
"You alright?" he had placed a comforting hand on Shuichi's shoulder.  
  
After looking around, and confirming that it was himself the boy was talking to, Shuichi decided it safe to voice the question that tugged the back of his brain:  
  
"You can see me?"  
  
But Shuichi had no idea the very statement would cause him to turn tail and walk away. Did he sound psycho asking or something?  
  
"Hey- hey wait!" Shuichi uncurled himself from the bench and proceeded to walk after him. He got no response from the boy, aside from that he began to walk faster.  
  
"If you run away I'll just come after you-" Shuichi said speeding up. Yup, he must definitely sound psycho.  
  
Again, he got no response.  
  
"Don't act like you can't hear me!!"  
  
Shuichi was already getting fed up. He felt something rise within him like an angry bubble about to burst, something strange. Was it the urge to scream?  
  
"STOP!!!"  
  
It was then he realized it wasn't just an _urge_. The boy froze, quite literally. He stopped in mid-stride, it was like Shuichi pressed a "pause" button or something. He walked over to examine him to find that his face was frozen in that same horrified expression, and only that his eyes were moving, watching Shuichi carefully.  
  
"Uh..." Shuichi mumbled poking the boy's stiff shoulder. "Did I do that?"  
  
If the boy were able to change expressions, Shuichi could've swore he was glaring at him.  
  
"Well if you would have stopped..." Shuichi trailed off, shaking his head. "Sorry, I'm new at this- whatever this is... um... Go?" He tried.  
  
The boy collapsed, gasping for breath like he's been underwater for several minutes.  
  
Shuichi knelt beside him, "Sorry, did I hurt you? I didn't mean too-"he fell back as the blonde pulled something from his coat and slapped it on Shuichi's hand.  
  
The singer blinked as the boy backed away.  
  
The pink haired teen stared at his hand, "A charm card?" He gasped as something burst from beneath him. Chains, ghostly glowing chains, wrapped themselves around his wrists and ankles, securing him to the ground.  
  
"W-what?!" Shuichi tried to move, but found himself unable. "What the hell is this?!" _Screw trust! I bet that innocent face is just to throw people off!_ He thought angrily. He pulled on the chains, grunting, only to find that is bindings just tightened. He struggled harder and the chains sank roughly through the ground.  
  
"Ah!" Shuichi cried with pain, a strange shock emitting through the bindings. "You bastard!" he screeched, the blonde boy's back turned, he was walking away.  
  
"You cold ass bastard! Get back here! I swear damnit, if you don't let me go I'll- I'll-"  
  
What could Shuichi do? Continue to scream until his throat was raw and bleeding? He was dead. No one could hear him. No one except... Shuichi silenced, a small whimper escaping his lips.  
  
This boy wouldn't help him...  
  
Would he?  
  
"Please!" Shuichi moaned, "Please don't leave me! Let me go- I can't stay like this! Please..."  
  
&&&  
  
He hesitated a moment, glancing over his shoulder.  
  
"Please don't leave me! Let me go- I can't stay like this! Please..."  
  
The spirit, chained and bound to the floor, was crying again.  
  
Mitsuo felt a pang of guilt, but shook his head. He was only protecting himself from being possessed! What's wrong with that?  
  
_Nothing_, came his conscience. _But did you honestly have to use that particular charm?  
  
_In truth, he didn't. Mitsuo had several charm cards to ward off spirits with, simple guardians to protect him from evil. And really complicated charms created by a temple priest, an example being the one he just used ("Demon Bindings," Mikuni, the handsome temple priest, had said. "Difficult to create, easy to use. Just slap it on the hands, back, or forehead of the one you're trying to ward off.").  
  
_Oh that poor thing_, the voice tutted. _He doesn't_ look _like a demon. His aura is new, just passing into the afterlife- he barely even acknowledged the fact that he's dead_.  
  
At that, Mitsuo felt guiltier. He sighed in defeat, turning around, approaching the weeping ghost.  
  
The pink spirit looked up, sniffling. He flinched when Mitsuo knelt next to him.  
  
"This is going to hurt a bit," Mitsuo murmured reaching for the charm.  
  
His only response was another whimper.  
  
Mitsuo hesitated, looking at the spirit. "Hey," he said.  
  
The ghost looked at him, eyes tearful.  
  
"If I let you go," the teen began. "You have to promise not to possess me."  
  
"P-possess?" The ghost squeaked.  
  
Mitsuo nodded, "Promise?"  
  
Looking a little confused, miffed, and afraid- the spirit nodded. "P- promise..."  
  
Mitsuo reached for the charm-  
  
RRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!  
  
"YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!!!"  
  
&&&  
  
"He's late,"  
  
Ichi Shirai checked his watch brushing black hair from his kohl colored eyes. He and Hasunuma (1) had been waiting at the school gates for over half an hour, and the bell was due to ring in ten minutes.  
  
"Odd," Hasunuma said. "He's never late."  
  
"Think he's sick?" Ichi wondered partly to himself.  
  
Hasunuma shook his head, "No, he would have told me."  
  
"You sure about that?" Ichi muttered giving him a suspicious look.  
  
"Of course he would... you lecher, probably scared him off." Hasunuma mumbled the last part, turning away.  
  
"I heard that!" Ichi glared.  
  
He was aired, of course, with a wave of Hasunuma's hand.  
  
Then a thought suddenly crossed Ichi's mind. "Hey,"  
  
Hasunuma looked over his shoulder. "Hm?"  
  
"You don't think..." He trailed off a bit, looking around. "He's in trouble?"  
  
The same notion occurred to Hasunuma as well, but for some reason he highly doubted it. Mitsuo was one capable of taking care of himself (though Hasunuma insisted on being as close to him as possible, much to Ichi's discomfort and jealousy). But then again, Mitsuo also was one to get into trouble- intentionally or no; spirits or the living.  
  
Sometimes Hasunuma cursed the Gift Mitsuo carried. The ability to see spirits, demons, and whatnot. It put him in more danger then one could go through in a lifetime- and at the same time, Hasunuma couldn't have been happier.  
  
If Mitsuo didn't have those abilities, he wouldn't have been able to help Kiyomi (the first ghost Mitsuo had helped), Kiyomi wouldn't have been able to possess Mitsuo to tell Hasunuma she had a crush on him, nor would she pass on to the afterlife.  
  
Without those abilities, Mitsuo and Hasunuma wouldn't have ever truly met. Without the Gift, Hasunuma wouldn't have fallen in love him.  
  
He couldn't clearly answer Ichi, but he tried.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
&&&  
  
Shuichi rubbed his wrists and ankles with his good hand after the chains had broken, vanishing in a shower of eerie glowing sparks. There was a mark on his other hand shaped like a long rectangle, stinging red like a horrible burn.  
  
The boy had torn off the menacing charm card, leaving Shuichi's skin feeling agitated like after a Nadz treatment- or a bikini wax gone wrong. Either way, it was quite painful.  
  
"Why'd you have to do that?!" Shuichi scowled, licking his "wound" like a kitten. "That hurt!"  
  
"Sorry," the blonde boy said tearing the used charm in two. "I thought you were going to possess me."  
  
"What-?! I don't even know _how_!" Shuichi grumbled still angry and feeling lingering helplessness. He didn't like that feeling. AT ALL.  
  
"Sorry," the boy repeated stuffing the remains of the charm in his pocket. He sounded unbelieving of Shuichi's earlier statement. This just irritated the singer a little more.  
  
But getting angry would do Shuichi no good at this point.  
  
"Listen, I'm... I'm kinda... I'm kinda dead." Shuichi said awkwardly wondering if the kid thought he were off his rocker, but he said nothing. He didn't even look surprised.  
  
"You're the only one who can see me," Shuichi continued. "I need help- help finding my body."  
  
"You're body?" The boy echoed, blinking. "What-? How did you die?"  
  
"That's the thing." Shuichi bit his bottom lip, "I don't know."  
  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
  
Well, isn't this a crummy place to cut off? XP Sorry, I'm in a hurry- you can REALLY tell I was rushing this. I apologize. I don't mean the cliff- I don't like this chapter either. Oh well... tell you what, if you want me to revise it- let me know, and I will. Or if you like it the way it is, let me know, okay? :)  
  
Well, I apologize for my absence- and that I couldn't make this longer. :(  
  
Give me lots of pretty reviews and I'll gladly continue. ;)  
  
AngelofSoul


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